Năvodari (, historical names: ''Carachioi''; ''Caracoium'', tr, Kara Koyum) is a town in

Constanța County Constanța () is a county (județ) of Romania on the border with Bulgaria, in the Dobruja region. Its capital city is also named Constanța. Demographics In 2011, it had a population of 684,082 and the population density was 96/km2. The degr ...

, region of Northern Dobruja,

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

, with a population of 32,400. The town formally includes a territorially distinct community, Social Group Peninsula, and administers the neighbouring village of Mamaia-Sat.

Etymology

The name of the town means "

trawlers Trawler may refer to: Boats * Fishing trawler, used for commercial fishing * Naval trawler, a converted trawler, or a boat built in that style, used for naval purposes ** Trawlers of the Royal Navy * Recreational trawler, a pleasure boat built t ...

" in

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

History

The settlement was mentioned for the first time in 1421 under the name ''Kara Koyun'' ("Black Sheep"), to be renamed later on ''Karaköy'' or ''Carachioi'' ("The Black Village"). In 1927, the locality was again renamed to ''Năvodari'' and after five years, on 15 August 1932, it was granted

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

status. The town developed during the communist regime as part of the industrialization program. In 1957, the

superphosphate Triple superphosphate is a component of fertilizer that primarily consists of monocalcium phosphate, Ca(H2PO4)2. Triple superphosphate is obtained by treating phosphate rock with phosphoric acid. Traditional routes for extraction of phosphate roc ...

and sulfuric acid plant, also known as USAS (''Uzina de Superfosfat si Acid Sulfuric'', Superphosphate and Sulfuric Acid Factory), whose construction had started in 1954, was opened, paving the road towards the industrialization of the area and demographic growth. However, the factory polluted the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

and

Lake Tașaul Lake Tașaul ( ro, Limanul Tașaul) is a lake in Northern Dobruja, Romania. Formerly an open salt water coastal lagoon, connected with the Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe ...

with toxic dumps. In the 1990s, the pollution was greatly reduced as the factory was modernized. In 1968 the population of Năvodari exceeded 6,500 inhabitants. A law adopted that year granted the commune of Năvodari town status and placed the ''Mamaia Sat'' village under its administration. The modernization of the town began in 1975 and was completed on 29 June 1979.

Current status

Today Năvodari is an important chemical and industrial town featuring a car repairs factory and a Petromidia factory specialized in petrochemical products. Năvodari has also developed in the social and cultural fields; in the city center there is a children's town, built between 1969 and 1972, vacation accommodations, and sports facilities where up to 12,000 visitors can be accommodated. Some from the town itself there is a summer camp (the largest one in Romania), built under the communist regime for school children. Due to its interesting programmes, good accommodation and affordable prices, it was extremely popular among teachers and parents. In the early 2000s, it was opened for the public at large as a cheap seaside resort.

Demographics

At the 2011 census, the population of Năvodari consisted of 29,873 ethnic Romanians (94.67%), 283

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the Urali ...

(0.90%), 309 Roma (0.98%), 10

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

(0.03%), 297

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...

(0.94%), 115

Tatars The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

(0.36%), 545

Lipovans , flag = Flag of the Lipovans.png , flag_caption = Flag of the Lipovans , image = Evstafiev-lipovane-slava-cherkeza.jpg , caption = Lipovans during a ceremony in front of the Lipovan church in the Romanian village of Slava Cercheză in 200 ...

(1.73%), 27

Aromanians The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...

(0.09%), 77 others (0.24%), and 18 with undeclared ethnicity (0.06%).

Notable natives

* (b. 1976), member of the

3rei Sud Est 3rei Sud Est (also spelled 3 Sud Est or 3SE, styled forms of ''Trei Sud-Est'', ) is a dance music group from Romania. The group was formed in 1997. The acronym translates in English by "Three South-East", because the band had three youths from C ...

band * Adrian Lungu (b. 1960), Romania's most capped rugby union player

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Navodari Towns in Romania Monotowns in Romania Populated places in Constanța County Localities in Northern Dobruja Populated coastal places in Romania Port cities and towns in Romania Port cities of the Black Sea Socialist planned cities